Recap

Peter Williams’ scouting notes:

Oakleigh Chargers:

#6 Campbell Lane – When Oakleigh needed a lift from its midfield in the last term, Lane was one of the key players who provided it. He is a nuggety midfielder who loves to tackle, finds himself in the right places at the right time and also has a nice sidestep that tricks his opponents. He seems like a clever player who knows when to move and his limitations. The biggest question mark I found was when in play and under pressure, Lane would often opt for a handball, rather than a kick. Now this of course could be circumstantial that he felt it was the best option, but at times when often, just bombing the ball forward, Lane would handball laterally to a player who was not always in a better position than himself. Whether this was a coaching operative, is yet to be seen. He has a nice package of tricks and stands up in pressure situations, just needs to back himself more.

#7 Taylin Duman – Here’s a player worth keeping an eye on. He is not a huge ball winner like some players, but he’s that defender that has great vision and is a very composed user of the football. Duman never seemed rushed when playing, even under pressure and would execute his kicks with precision. Most of the time, he was making short passes so they are easier to execute, but he certainly lowers his eyes, which is something recruiters will be impressed with.

#8 Toby Wooller – He’s a bottom-age player so we won’t see him in the AFL until at least 2018, but he is one to watch. He has a good work rate, a strong set of dukes and is a reliable set shot. More importantly, he has a good turning circle so he can win contested ground balls against his opponent. He reminds me a little of Jack Gunston, of whom might not be a number one target, but when he does get his chances he makes the most of them. The biggest question mark was his disposal when up the ground. He missed a couple of targets when entering forward 50, but when taking the shot himself, he was spot on.

#15 Jordan Ridley – A game changer who can play at either end. He played in defence for a lot of the first half, then moved to attack later with much success. He kicked three goals and could have had at least five by the end. Was a good target for the Chargers who marks well when on the lead. His biggest question mark is his one-on-ones, where he was beaten when in a wrestle. But he moves well that if the ball is put in front of him, he’ll mark it nine times out of 10. The biggest thing for Ridley will be to maintain this form for the remainder of the season and throughout finals when Oakleigh is full strength.

#21 Lachie Walker – The Chargers’ midfielder is a ball magnet who helped turn the game in Oakleigh’s favour. Kicked two goals when drifting down to the forward line, and found space well. He works hard defensively and seems like a player with a good footy IQ. He missed a set shot that otherwise was a good day out for Walker. He does appear to be more than just an accumulator, because he does have a long booming kick. The only thing I would be looking for from him is whether he has that ‘pick me’ factor that forces recruiters to find a reason not to draft him. He has a good all-round game, but lacks X-factor, which is not a huge deal, because plenty of players get drafted without having too many tricks, but it would be good to just see what he has, because he seems good enough to play AFL.

Northern Territory:

#8 Rohan Armstrong – Armstrong is one of those raw prospects that can excite you and frustrate you at the same time. Heading into the game I did not know a lot about him, but what I saw in glimpses was impressive. He moves through traffic like a hot knife slicing through butter. Armstrong has a great burst of acceleration and good pace, but most importantly, takes the game on and breaks the lines. The big knock on him is his disposal and kicking penetration, which is the main reason he would be unlikely to be drafted. But if he cleans that up a little, he could be a late rookie prospect, or have a season in a state league to test his wares.

#16 Ezekiel Frank – Frank is the extra year older, having played with the North Ballarat Rebels last year. A medium tall forward, Frank showed he has talent and is a target, but he does not have the ‘wow’ factor that makes him stand out from a crowd. He has good evasion and a nice sidestep, coupled with good skills, but he still has a very skinny frame and is often outbodied at this level. He has a good turn of speed, which helps him when the ball hits the ground, but he needs to add an extra string to his bow to find himself drafted at the end of the year.

#19 Isaiah Farrell-Nelson – This kid is one to watch this year. Coming into the game, I thought Northern Territory had three potential draftees (Parfitt, Hagan and Olango), with only the latter ending up playing. But Farrell-Nelson was one that just stood out from start to finish. One poor set shot stopped him from having an almost complete game, with four goals and several high flying marks. Farrell-Nelson has that X-factor, with good speed, strong overhead, seemingly a good shot for goal and reads the ball well in flight. The fact he missed his last set shot might be an abberation, or it could be the pressure of it effectively icing the game, which questions his pressure moments capacity. Other than that, the biggest knock on him is he is very clearly outside. There are those that can still win their own ball, but he does appear to be one that waits in the wings for the quick handball and darts off. There’s nothing wrong with that given he has all the attributes he needs, but with more emphasis on defensive pressure, it may be one sticking point with clubs.

#25 Nigel Lockyer – If Farrell-Nelson might have froze in the final moments, this guy singlehandedly helped Northern Territory get over the line. Playing on Jordan Ridley in the final quarter, Lockyer won three huge one-on-one contests, outmarking the in-form player who had booted three goals in the space of 20 minutes. He was superb reading the ball in flight and outbodying his opponent to take the grab. While he was not sighted much in the first half, that could be put down to the fact the ball was barely sighted in Oakleigh’s front half.

#32 Tony Olango – He might not get drafted, but boy is this lanky kid exciting. The big ruck/forward has more moves than a 70s disco dancer and plays like a rover. He knows when to go for the big grabs, and backs them up with second efforts. His vertical leap and strong tap work is really promising, but there are some fundamental question marks over Olango. Besides for his skinny frame, he does get outbodied often and seems to elect to bump rather than tackle. Once when a player dove for a ball, rather than laying a straight forward tackle, Olango bumped which looked slighly awkard. Thinking it was a once-off and he misread the situation, he did it again later in the game. Not sure how much to read into it. But he certainly would be a fan favourite with his exciting leaps and ground level ball winning skills.